July 28, 2016

Kelly Purkey shop has a super cute summer release that is available today! Could not resist the cherry stamps with a recent trip to Washington!

The alphabet is Walter which coordinates with last month's Dalton. Love it! I'm still working on being a straight line stamper. I feel like it adds personality hahah. How is that I can line up stickers without a problem?! Anyways, there's also a super cute ice cream set but my photos haven't arrived yet so I'll be sure to share some examples with that as well! I didn't get my KP cards yet so these papers are from Studio Calico. Be sure to head over to Kelly Purkey shop to check out her holiday release! It's been so hot, I can't wrap my brain around holiday samples yet, but they will be coming on the blog as well!

July 27, 2016

Motherhood during summertime has always been a blessing and a curse. Long days without a schedule but then long days without a schedule- know what I mean? I've had 21 summers as a mother. Some better summers than others. Yesterday, 3 of the 4 kids asked me to go to Lacma- the museum that's here in LA. I feel like I'm always asking them to go and they turn me down so you could imagine my giddiness when they suggested it!! Not only would we be doing something they wanted to do- Cam was going to drive us! (Nerve wrecking but amazing that I didn't have to be the one driving on LA freeways!)
We did it right by hitting up the food trucks across the street for lunch before entering the museum- you know, avoiding meltdowns because we're hangry. Which means more perusing later with full bellies.
We did the usual- walking, talking, admiring, lots of photos. But it wasn't til we were driving home that it it hit me. About 12 years ago, I had only 3 kids and they were about 8, 5 and 3. I was on a kick to beat boredom during that summer with young children. I wanted to take them on adventures that didn't cost a lot of money. So came the idea of visiting a new park each day in LA. We did this religiously for an entire summer. Some were hits, some were misses. But the overall memory stuck with us. And this tedious task for me, sitting at a park all day long- this is pre-iphone period, so usually reading a book/magazine, playing with the kids, refereeing stranger's kids, all of that in the LA heat- hours upon hours of doing that... made my heart hurt. I longed for that time on the park. The time where my babies were just babies and the days and months of summer were long but so full. Yesterday was pretty amazing. Being able to still be together and going on an adventure. I honestly love this stage where my children are now, 21, 17, 15 and 10. I wish I could pause it and soak it up. I know now that the summers are long but fleeting. How time has changed... park sitting all day to me dropping the day's to-do list to hang with them at the museum. Always the right choice.

July 08, 2016

Liz's templates aren't just for pocket pages! I love the ease of dragging and dropping photos in and creating with guides but making it my own. This was made from this template: I feel like I've been swamped with projects and I completely enjoyed somewhat not having to overthink what I was going to make with these. They are rather addicting! :)

"Pocket Guides can also easily be adapted to other sizes - 6x12 (complete 2 spreads at once!), 9x12 and 6x8 pages to name few. In addition to the 12x12 templates, this set includes individual 4x6 and 3x4 templates that can be used as standalone templates. Mix and match them to create custom pages. These templates can be used over and over again to create unique pages each time!"

July 04, 2016

June 30, 2016

Ah, June stamp sets already? How did we get here so quickly?! I have enjoyed playing with these sets this month. These colors are just everything! So fun and happy! The Great Outdoors set is one of my faves. I think I will use it all summer long! :) And it's been awhile, but I loved decorating my planner for an upcoming trip! (LOTS of photos coming soon! Too much fun in Arizona! :) ) These are just a little sample of this month's release. I totally plan on digging in and getting more done! :) Check them out before they're all gone!

June 01, 2016

Hi there! How is it JUNE already?! That means we are halfway done with 2016?! WHAT!!! I am happy to share June's kit at Studio Calico, SCOUT! How cute is that name? I have here the Main SB kit. There are so many goodies that I combined here, all included in the main kit. The acrylic word, the chipboard numbers, the stamp set (make a wish and the candles) I stamped onto the watercolored tabs, the washi and the acetate circles and the specialty paper. LOVE it all!! This little notebook is included in the Planner kits. I love the little size and colored papers, I am going to be using this as my purse notebook over the summer. Perfect size!Hope you get a chance to pop over for the reveal! It's a good one! Happy beginning of summer! :)

May 28, 2016

This month at Kelly Purkey's shop, I was able to design a kit and have it come to life! I designed this stamp set and some 4x4 cards. I was inspired by the things I love most: love, home and family. I am so excited to see it and feel it in my hands and USE them! I can't wait to see others begin to use them. I've seen a bit and will compile a blog post on that shortly! Kelly's stamps and cards this month are so fun. I love the words are the greatest gift card because I am actually always telling my husband, just give me words. He has a gift with the words and I treasure them completely. So this month really hit home for me. Go Kelly! :) Here's the link to shop!

Here's a little spread I made in my passport size midori. Our oldest daughter is off to University this fall and there are so many feelings that go with that, that I knew I wasn't ready to dive in and let the tears loose! So starting small with the little passport size I love. Be sure to stock up before they're all gone! Or even better, sign up for a membership!

May 07, 2016

Just a quick hello on National Scrapbook Day! I love that I live in a country that celebrates documenting and recording memories. Be sure to check out Studio Calico's activities throughout the day and the sitewide 30%off at The Lily Pad! :) Hope you get some crafting time in today! Thanks for being part of my creative story. xo

May 03, 2016

I am so excited to announce a new class I will be teaching during the summer at Studio Calico. It's called Summer of Sketches and is enrolling now! I have an amazing set of contributors who will be joining me and we are going to be doing something fun with the class- it'll be a sketch class in Round Robin form! It'll start with a sketch/layout and then we will pass it on to the next person who will then interpret that sketch to their own and pass it on! I'm so excited to see it unfold! Check out the stamp set Tina from Life Love Paper designed for the class! It's free with class purchase and will ship free too!! Available while supplies last so make sure to grab yours!!

Here are a few samples from the class from Paige Evans and Lisa Truesdell. Crazy good right?! Here's a little more info about the class!

12 start-to-finish videos from Jamie, showing how she went from sketch to finished layout. Jamie will be sharing tips and tricks for adapting layouts to fit the number and sizes of photos you have, and ideas for switching them up to keep your projects looking fresh, no matter how many times you use the same sketch.

Round robin inspiration : See how each sketch changes as it passes from one artist to another! We'll start each week's lesson with a sketch based on Jamie's work, then each scrapbooker will work from a sketch of the layout created by the person before them.

36 all new layouts from Jamie and her contributors

48 sketches - 12 sketches based on Jamie's past work, plus 36 more based on the class projects.

A printable PDF of all of the class sketches

Access to a class message board and gallery, where you can share and learn with your teacher and fellow students

April 30, 2016

I'm usually a handmade kinda girl for Mother's Day but this popped in my email and really caught my eye! Look at how you could customize your desktop while helping moms at the same time.A portion of the proceeds from the exclusive Orange Rose Collection will go towards the organization this Mother's Day. I am torn between FLOWER BOUQUET and MOVE ME. There's also some cute items too, journals and art prints. I am floored that you can turn this journal into a planner or address book with their easy addons. LOVE THIS ONE. I know I would LOVE a new set of stationary for the snail mail lover in me. This one is gorgeous! HELLO! These napkins! Usually I find myself flustered this time of year, we've got lots of birthdays, graduations and Mother's Day. I'm going to give myself permission to purchase gifts that have already been designed. :) There's a coupon in the banner to the right hand side, too! :)

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. THANK YOU! All opinions are my own and all things I would truly love and enjoy!